More than 1 million coronavirus cases were reported in the US, a record single-day number, amid the rapid increase of the new Omicron variant, according to Johns Hopkins University.
The Maryland-based school registered 1,082,549 new cases on Monday. The US currently has 56.1 million confirmed cases and an excess of 827,000 deaths.
President Joe Biden is set to meet members of the White House Covid-19 Response Team on the latest developments related to the Omicron variant.
The new variant, which is less severe than delta, is responsible for most of the new cases in recent weeks, according to studies.
But Dr. Anthony Fauci, a top infectious diseases expert, warned the massive surge in cases will still lead to hospitalizations even though data shows Omicron appears to cause less serious infection.
“That’s the reason why we’re concerned about stressing and straining the hospital system,” Fauci told George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s This Week news program.
On vaccinations, more than 205 million Americans are fully vaccinated, or about 62 percent of the population, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (PNA)
